South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) CEO Curtis C. Griffith Sells 21,443 Shares of Stock

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 21,443 shares of South Plains Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.36, for a total transaction of $758,224.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 807,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,544,006.40. This trade represents a 2.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

Shares of SPFI opened at $33.80 on Friday. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.05 and a 1-year high of $40.90. The stock has a market cap of $553.98 million, a PE ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $35.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.04.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.29. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 17.20% and a return on equity of 11.75%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

South Plains Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price objective (down from $46.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on shares of South Plains Financial from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On South Plains Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SPFI. US Bancorp DE purchased a new stake in South Plains Financial in the third quarter valued at $36,000. FMR LLC increased its stake in South Plains Financial by 39.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,397 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in South Plains Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $101,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in South Plains Financial in the third quarter valued at $149,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in South Plains Financial by 72.4% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,503 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,891 shares during the period. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About South Plains Financial

South Plains Financial, Inc operates as a bank holding company for City Bank that provides commercial and consumer financial services to small and medium-sized businesses and individuals. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It offers deposit products, including demand deposit accounts, interest-bearing products, savings accounts, and certificate of deposits.